Struggling McCourty saves his day with interception

FOXBORO — Even when Devin McCourty made his biggest play Sunday, his fourth-quarter interception of Miami quarterback Matt Moore, he wasn’t sure he’d made the play.

By BRIAN MacPHERSON Journal Sports Writer

FOXBORO - Even when Devin McCourty made his biggest play Sunday,his fourth-quarter interception of Miami quarterback Matt Moore, hewasn't sure he'd made the play.

"It was hanging in the air," McCourty said. "I thought I jumpedtoo early at first."

It's been a difficult sophomore season for McCourty, who lookedlast season like a premier cover corner but who this season hasbeen thrown at more than a dartboard. He hasn't been bad. He hasn'tbeen the Pro Bowl-caliber cornerback the Patriots hoped he'd be,either.

Miami targeted McCourty as much as anyone has, going after himwhether he was covering Brandon Marshall or Brian Hartline.Hartline outran McCourty to catch a pass for 39 yards in the firstquarter, and Marshall out-muscled McCourty to haul in a 47-yardpass on the Dolphins' first play of the second quarter.

Marshall, of course, is one of the elite receivers in the NFL, a6-foot-4 pass-catching machine with more than 1,000 receiving yardsin five straight seasons. But the Patriots drafted McCourty in thefirst round two years ago precisely to match him up against playerslike that.

"He's going to make some plays, but you've got to make someplays yourself," McCourty said. "It was definitely a battletoday."

McCourty did make a handful of plays. He was credited with fourpass breakups in the game, including two on back-to-back drives inthe first quarter, more than he had in the Patriots' first 12 gamescombined.

But he again didn't play the way the Patriots need one of theirdefensive captains to play - especially given how piecemeal therest of their defense has been this season.

"The biggest thing is putting pressure on ourselves to makeplays," he said. "Sometimes we're in perfect position - on one playin the first half, I was in perfect position - and you've just gotto make the play. We've got to keep putting the pressure onourselves to do that."

With the Dolphins facing a third-and-12 deep in their ownterritory early in the second quarter, Moore kept his eyes onMcCourty and wide receiver Brian Hartline with every step of hisdrop-back. He didn't look anywhere else. His throw was not a goodone. but McCourty - as Moore perhaps hoped - obliged him byreaching out to tug Hartline's jersey.

McCourty and several other Patriots protested the predictablepenalty flag, arguing in vain that the ball was not catchable. Itdidn't matter.

"When it first came out, I'd seen the ball and I thought it wastipped," McCourty said. "That's why I tried to get to him before. Ithought the ball was tipped. It looked like it was overthrown, butI put my hands on him. Anytime the ball is in the air and it's nottipped and you touch a receiver, it's going to be passinterference."

The penalty kept alive a Miami drive that might have been thePatriots' worst defensive drive in recent memory. Rob Ninkovichdrew a similarly silly pass-interference flag on an under-thrownhalfback pass from Bush in the direction of Moore.

(A Christmas morning question to ponder about football andbaseball: What's worse - drawing a pass-interference flag whencovering a quarterback or issuing a walk to an opposingpitcher?)

That McCourty came away with an interception - and the Patriotscame away with a win - undoubtedly made the big plays thecornerback surrendered a little easier to take.

But if the Patriots are going to advance deep into the playoffs,they'll need McCourty to play more like he did last year than hehas so far this year.

Immediately after he knocked the ball out of the hands ofMarshall on a slant late in the fourth quarter, he allowed Marshallto get behind him for a 41-yard reception that set up a touchdown -a play that more than negated what had been a timely passbreakup.

"That's the life of playing corner," he said. "You make a play,and they come right back and they make a play. I'll just keepbattling. In the secondary, you're always going to go against that.With the receivers in this league, they're able to make some plays.It's back and forth every week."

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